What Does It Mean To Be A Jelly Bean?

"We weren't doin' nothing at Montebello 'cept decidin' on
what it means to be a jelly bean.... and what 'chocolate' means.

While the above is amusing in a very sad kind of way, the subject of definitions - or more precisely, coding definitions for computer systems is anything but amusing.  It's critically important in the way the computer systems accumulate statistics, report on the statistics and most especially in the way you interpret the reports on those statistics.   By way of example, consider the word, "manufacturing".  Unless you are a green-eye shade government economist trained within the last decade or so, your perception of manufacturing is a plant that assembles a product - a tangible good for sale most often to a wholesaler.  However, in the 'New World Order'  - a world managed by HAL¹, the definition of manufacturing changed as are the definitions of jelly beans and chocolate changing.

The importance of statistical reports cannot be overstated.  The modern world runs on these statistical reports as evidenced by the statements of government and business leaders regarding the "Economic Census" reports:

The Economic Census is indispensable to understanding America's economy. It insures the accuracy of the statistics we rely on for sound economic policy and for successful business planning. Returning your economic census form helps us all." --Alan Greenspan, Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors

"Sound and timely economic data are the fuel that powers economic decision making. Data are used by Congress, the Federal Reserve, regulatory agencies, and American businesses to formulate and evaluate fiscal, monetary, and regulatory policies and to develop business plans and financing strategies. Without sound economic data, policy makers in both the public and private sector would be flying blind.

"The current economic statistics that most people are familiar with, like retail sales and the Gross Domestic Product, all have their origins in the data that are collected in the 5-year economic censuses. So when we rely on, and others rely on, those current economic statistics, for policy decisions, they really are relying on the quality of the economic census data.

U.S. Census Bureau

North American Industry Classification System (NAICS)

"The United States has a new industry classification system! On April 9, 1997, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) announced its decision to adopt the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS pronounced Nakes) as the industry classification system used by the statistical agencies of the United States. NAICS replaces the 1987 Standard Industrial Classification (SIC).

NAICS is a unique, all-new system for classifying business establishments. It is the first economic classification system to be constructed based on a single economic concept. Economic units that use like processes to produce goods or services are grouped together. This "production-oriented" system means that statistical agencies in the United States will produce data that can be used for measuring productivity, unit labor costs, and the capital intensity of production; constructing input-output relationships; and estimating employment-output relationships and other such statistics that require that inputs and outputs be used together.

NAICS is the first-ever North American industry classification system. The system was developed by the Economic Classification Policy Committee (ECPC), on behalf of the OMB, in cooperation with Statistics Canada and Mexico's Instituto Nacional de Estadística, Geografía e Informática (INEGI) to provide comparable statistics across the three countries. For the first time, government and business analysts will be able to compare directly industrial production statistics collected and published in the three North American Free Trade Agreement countries. NAICS also provides for increased comparability with the International Standard Industrial Classification System (ISIC, Revision 3), developed and maintained by the United Nations."
 

If the government redefines jelly beans as "jellied sugar lumps", does that mean there is a shortage of jelly beans when the report shows zero?

Beware of Crooks in White Shirts and Ties

Redefining the codes that produce the reports that the Congress, the media and everybody else uses to gage the health of the economy was a bamboozle of epic purportions.  This puts the ENRON, Worldcom, etc. accounting scandals to shame.   Changing codes produced 'shortages' in some categories - and over abundances in others.  An example of how the statistics changed with the new coding system was shown in a slide show produced by the U.S. Census bureau on the 'Economic Census'.    Change the codes.... and Voila!  Shortages of Qualified American Workers... in all categories.  And it enabled "The Economy is Booming"  message while in the real world of the domestic economy there is a Depression.

NAICS ASSOCIATION

"The SIC, however, treated the production of goods for other establishments of the same enterprise differently. If a manufacturing establishment produced goods for use within the enterprise, the manufacturing establishment was classified according to its primary activity, not the primary activity of the establishment it served. This different treatment of service producing versus manufacturing auxiliary establishments was inconsistent and NAICS recognized this inconsistency. NAICS classifies auxiliary establishments based on what they do, not on whom they serve. The production oriented concept of NAICS mandated this change.

This change will result in significant shifts in employment data. In 1992, Census data showed over 1,000,000 auxiliary employees assigned to manufacturing and over 840,000 auxiliary employees assigned to retail trade. These employees are most likely  to move to either the Management of Companies and Enterprises sector; the Warehousing and Storage sub sector; the Computer Systems Design and Related Services sub sector; the Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping and Payroll Services sub sector; or some other services-related sub sector. For the 1997 Economic Census, these auxiliary establishments will be dual coded by primary activity and by whom they serve. The data will be shown separately to provide data users with the necessary links to prior information."

[Note: the above implies that after 1997, the links to prior information were eliminated and the conversion to the new system was complete].

This is no doubt why "economists surprised by latest unemployment increases" has become boilerplate in economic news stories and yet.... the national unemployment statistics don't vary much from around the 4½ percent figure.  It explains why at the time when there were record bankruptcies, record foreclosures, lines at the food banks extending for a quarter mile in Ohio, the newspapers were reporting a "booming economy".

And that's not the worst of it.  The same people who were inside players on the SCAM of redefinition of the codes for U.S. economic reports - are the same people who are pushing "reform" of our education system to be a supply-chain management system for business to fulfill the 'orders' caused by the 'Shortages' of qualified American Workers. 

National Association of Manufacturers

U.S. Chamber of Commerce

Regionalism and Education - Central Planning and 'Regional Economic AUTHORITIES'

History of the 1997 Economic Census

"In June 1994, the Census Bureau reorganized the Economic Directorate to facilitate conducting both the 1997 Economic Census and the agency’s current economic programs. The Census Bureau established the Economic Planning and Coordination Division (EPCD) to provide centralized planning."

OMB Announcement 1994

In a Federal Register notice of July 26, 1994 (59 FR 38092-38096), OMB announced that the ECPC had agreed to work in concert with Mexico's Instituto Nacional de Estadística, Geografía e Informática (INEGI) and Statistics Canada to develop a new and common industry classification system ­ the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) ­ that would replace the existing system used in the United States, the Standard Industrial Classification System (SIC). Final agreement on NAICS was announced in a Federal Register notice of April 9, 1997 (62 FR 17287-17337). This agreement resulted in the publication in 1998 of the new North American Industry Classification System, United States, 1997 manual.

Senator Judd Gregg, "We Do Have A Centrally Managed Economy", 2007

A final note in this commentary is a warning.... the people who are the controllers of the government codes and computer systems (IT computer consulting corporations in charge of government facilities) can and will continue to "tweak" the codes to manipulate the reports to serve THEIR economic interests... not the interests of the American people and our country.  It's a classic example of the tail wagging the dog.  To be more precise.... the corporate takeover of government computer systems by computer consulting firms was a coup d'etat on the U.S. government - an administrative coup d'etat.      

Vicky Davis,
August 24, 2007

Vicky L. Davis was a Computer Systems Analyst/Programmer who spent 20 years designing and writing computer systems for large corporations and state and local governments.  For 15 of those years, she worked as a Contractor, which gave her exposure to a wide variety of different businesses and their internal applications and operations.   She has traveled extensively and has lived in nine states in the course of her life’s adventure.